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Windows 11 is the newest version of  Microsoft Windows OS, and has some handy new features along with several changes.  With the new release you are probably contemplating if Windows 11 is worth the upgrade, and if you should take that leap.   If you are wondering if Windows 11 is right for you, you won’t want to miss this podcast where Harry Brelsford of SMB Nation sits down with  Susan Bradley to discuss the pros and cons of Windows 11 and what you should do. 

Video Transcription

Harry Brelsford 

Hey nation nation back with longtime parentless not aged herself, but readily over it ask woody All right, so some so what’s news you always have news you have that popular newsletter and site ask what are you what’s going on?

Susan Bradley 

We’re, we’re still in the I’m gonna call it the air stage that kind of summertime blah, they do a really want to roll out windows 11? Do we want to still stay on 10? I know I’m in that camp that, first off. I’m a firm believer that I’m not wanting to take existing working computers and push them to something that we’re still in the process of working the bugs out. Windows 11. As you know, they’re coming up with a new release. And it’s one of those kinds of releases that you kind of go, why didn’t you put that in version one. So some of the things are like the redesigned task manager that has been annoying. IT pros integration of mica and desktop apps, return of drag and drop to the taskbar all those little things that we kind of go, you know, we were asking for that like a year ago, when you first rolled it out? Why did it take you so long? And as you know, Windows 11 has a very high bar when it comes to hardware. I know in my own firm, I only have I can count on one hand. How many machines in my office are truly windows 11. Ready? Yeah, all the rest of them have something in them a CPU. Either they, most of them have a TPM TPM chips. But there’s something else like a processor chip or something that just keeps them out of the bar. And I’m one of these people that I don’t like hacking things, and going around requirements. You know, yes, there’s that thing in there where you can put in the registry, and you can say yes, even though it doesn’t meet this one over here, I’ll go, I understand the consequences. And I’ll go around it. And especially in business, I don’t like to do that. I don’t mind doing that on the machine that I’m playing with. But when it comes to day to day, if you know, a user is going to use it on a regular basis and going to have weird things occur. That’s just not how I roll. So I have to want I’m going to be buying my way into Windows 11. Probably over the next two to three years. Okay. And that’s just the way it is.

Harry Brelsford 

Yeah, it’s it’s interesting, more, more than any other time. Well, maybe, maybe not. You know, there was windows in me. There’s, there’s been some stories to tell. But you’re right. As far as I can tell, with my involvement in the community, there is this hesitation, right? It’s it’s kind of like Vista in the eight. There’s this hesitations and you know, versus people got pretty darn excited about Windows XP, you know, like, okay, that that makes sense. And they loved it. They didn’t want to leave it.

Susan Bradley 

I mean, you have to go back in history. I mean, Windows XP Service Pack, two people hated that. Oh, really, people turned off. You know, there was a lot of security features between the original XP and XP Service Pack two, you know, in it we have we sometimes don’t we have long memories and short memories. Yeah. So we will sometimes forget the you know that we yelled on the very thing that we’re now hanging on to XP, Windows seven, Windows 10. When it comes to its end of life, we probably yelled on the way in. So we have this kind of like, you know, we remember the good times, we sometimes forget that every single major hardware release, software release, we’ve had these sticking points where it’s hurt for a while, and then we go then afterwards. We love it. And 11 And I do think because every everyone talks about the every other Caden’s don’t get this version, get the next one. They drew the line in the sand because of security that, you know, they I don’t think they’ve handled this well on Windows 11. You know, there are some really good security goodness things in Windows 11. The problem is, and especially for those of us in SMB, and those of us with budgets and things, a lot of the really good things in Windows 11 That demand those hardware requirements that they’re putting out there are up in those those higher licenses. You have to have a e three or E five in order to really get all of the security goodness. Yeah, so it’s kind of like Well, thanks, guys. But down here in this SMB space, we’re not necessarily using all the licenses so why are you pushing those hardware requirements when we’re not doing everything that you know, we’re not getting all the licensing in order to to deploy all that stuff.

Harry Brelsford 

Yeah. Yeah. Well, I’ll tell you what, I just happen to still have an old Windows Vista. Last I got these. What was her name in Microsoft, New York City, I lean to veto. So probably a little bit more on the partner side than the product side. And she hosted some of them. You know, this is back in the day, of course. So, I still have a couple of these windows vista. Cops, and every now and then I’ll be on the line with someone from somewhere and they’ll say that say Windows Vista? Yeah. Well, I’ll tell you what, Susan, I appreciate the you’re framing it up. We’ll circle back next quarter. So enjoy the the rest of the summer.

Susan Bradley 

Sounds good. Good to talk to you.

Harry Brelsford 

Okay. Oh, and by the way, before I go, where can people sign up for your newsletter? Where can they get more information?

Susan Bradley 

Just go to ask what do you.com There’s a little registration in the corner, we have both a free newsletter and a paid newsletter. So the free news newsletter, we give you one free article every week. And then we taught you by saying hey, there are these other really, really good stuff that if you want to donate, and we’re a donate what you like model. So as long as you pay $1 or more, we’d love you to pay more obviously, but obviously, you know, $1 is the bare minimum we just asked $1 in the tip jar and and that’s how we send you a newsletter every week. And also gives you access to what’s called the master patch list. And it’s where I keep track of patches that come out on a regular basis from Microsoft, Microsoft, Apple, Google these days, we’re trying to we’re trying to be realistic as to the marketplace, covering all the different patches and kind of tracking things that will hit you and your clients.

Harry Brelsford 

All right, keep up the good work.

Susan Bradley 

Thank you